Platinum is Forever
by Mana-Ryou
Summary: When Lizzie and her best friend Barry receive their first Pokemon from Professor Rowan, they expected to travel like normal kids and collect gym badges, not end up facing Sinnoh's largest criminal organisation. Facing the odds along side her new companions, can Lizzie stop Team Galactic from ridding the world of spirit? And will she find herself and her own dreams along the way?
1. Home is Where the Hearth Is!

It was a brisk, early start to the morning – the Starly were already chirping at the freshly risen sun, the flower beds neatly manicured to perfection and Twin Leaf town awoke to the usual yell of: "LIZZIE! IF YOU DON'T WAKE UP NOW I'LL FINE YOU TEN MILLION!" The blonde groaned loudly at the sound of her best friend screeching at her, before daring to peep out from under the duvet. Barry, fully dressed and practically blazing with energy, was stood in the doorway with his hands on his hips with a fierce frown on his face.

He had plans for the day. Plans that no doubt involved her. Plans that were no doubt stupid. They stared at each other for a moment, eyes locked in a battle of wills before Lizzie disappeared back under the bed sheet, curling it around her like a large, lumpy cocoon, willing herself to go back to sleep and for Barry to just give up. Barry wasn't having any of it. The blonde male let out a war cry of frustration and seized the covers, yanking on them to try and pull Lizzie out of bed.

"COME ON LIZZIE I'VE GOT A REALLY GOOD IDEA TODAY!" He cried, narrowly avoiding receiving a foot in the face by grabbing her ankle and pulling on that too as Lizzie clung to the bed frame in an effort to remain where she was. It was Saturday – could she not just enjoy one lie in for once?  
"Your last really good idea got us attacked by a flock of Starly at Lake Verity," Lizzie protested, tugging her ankle out of Barry's grasp and tucking it back into the duvet.  
Barry pouted. "I promise, today is different! Here's what I'm thinking!" He flopped onto the bed, landing right on top of the lump that was Lizzie. He pulled back the sheets from her head to make sure she was listening and could hear him clearly. "You know Professor Rowan lives in Sandgem town? We should go there and ask for a pokémon!" He sat up, grinned from ear to ear; surely thinking his plan was brilliant. Lizzie was perfectly used to his antics and looked back up at him, eyes half open, looking quite unimpressed with the suggestion.

"What, you want to just walk in and ask if we can have pokémon? Good luck." Lizzie tugged the duvet back over her head, only for Barry to roar in frustration.  
"HOW COULD YOU NOT THINK IT'S THE BEST PLAN EVER! DON'T YOU WANT A POKÉMON?!" He threw himself onto the floor dramatically, one arm covering his face as though withholding tears. "Lizzie, are you not my best friend? My bravest, most loyal companion through hell and high water? Where's your sense of adventure?" He finished, knelt on the floor staring her down.  
"The Starly took it," Lizzie shot back, slightly muffled accounting for the fact her face was now buried in her pillow. "And it's not like Professor Rowan will just give away pokémon, especially not to Twin Leaf town's village idiot and said idiot's best friend."  
"You're not an idiot Lizzie," Barry replied blankly, eye brows raised. Lizzie laughed dryly – he really was dense. But then again, he always had been. He leaned up onto the side of the bed, prodding Lizzie's back. "And besides, remember when we were kids? And we would play pokémon battles together and you always picked Piplup?"  
"And I always blasted you and Turtwig up to Snowpoint city," Lizzie laughed. She sat up, pushing the duvet away, ruffling her already messy hair, fingers getting tangled in the knots. "Alright, alright. If you'll stop pestering me, we'll go and see Professor Rowan," she muttered, wiping away a trail of drool from the corner of her mouth.

"EXCELLENT!" Barry leapt to his feet, bright orange eyes practically bursting with fire. "I'll meet you at Route 201! And if you're late, I'll fine you one hundred million!" And with that, he was gone, leaving Lizzie to roll her eyes at the sound of the front door slamming shut and her mother laughing in the kitchen. He was always like that.

-{P}-

Lizzie and Barry had been best friends forever, playing together every day and learning all about Pokémon from Barry's dad. They went to the small school house in the village, learning basic maths, English and science and were almost always together which a lot of other kids teased them for – girls didn't hang out with boys and boys didn't hang out with girls. It was the unspoken rule but Lizzie and Barry didn't care because one day they'd be Pokémon Masters and would conquer the Pokémon League, then they would see who was laughing. They would change that stupid rule because it was the dumbest rule ever.

Barry's father, Palmer, backed up their dreams whenever he came home from the Battle Frontier and refereed their imaginary pokémon battles. Lizzie always picked Piplup whilst Barry used Turtwig in these matches, but Lizzie would pull off the most amazing combination ever and win the match, leaving Barry to run off after the imaginary Turtwig that was sent flying to Snowpoint city whilst Palmer just laughed and went to help his son recover the imaginary pokémon with the help of his Dragonite which always ended up with the Tower Tycoon giving both children a ride on the back of his dragon.

But as they had gotten older, they stopped playing those games. For Lizzie, school became a higher priority and imaginary pokémon battles were for little children. Lizzie slowly, but surely, became disinterested in their old dream of the Pokémon League. It wasn't that she didn't want it anymore, she did! But without a pokémon, how was she supposed to do that anyway? Her mother wasn't exactly a trainer herself so she couldn't catch a pokémon for her daughter to start with and her father had passed away years ago in a mountaineering accident.

Lizzie just accepted that by the time she had a pokémon, she would probably have more important things to worry about and so went with the motions, humouring Barry with their adventures in the nearby woods and around the lake, all the while assuring herself she was content with her life and keeping up with her school work. Fifteen years old and not being a trainer was not as unusual as many people seemed to think anyway. Even if several of her peers were already travelling on journeys, pokémon by their sides.

Lizzie dressed quickly, knowing how impatient Barry would be if he was made to wait too long, and hurried down the stairs. She said a quick good morning to her mother coupled with a kiss on the cheek, before grabbing an apple from the fruit bowl and disappearing out of the front door. It was a little later than half past seven on a Saturday morning, so most people were still in bed having a lie in. Such a thing clearly did not exist if your name was Barry or if you were Barry's best friend, so Lizzie walked along the path through the village towards Route 201.

Barry was leaning against the signpost just ahead, his foot tapping impatiently as he checked his Pokétch's clock and he practically jumped to attention when he saw Lizzie approaching.  
"You're late, so I should fine you!" He said loudly, pointing at her accusingly. "But right now we've got more important things to worry about! Now, to Sandgem town!" Lizzie frowned for a second, looking up the path. The grass was tall and thick here, perfect for wild pokémon to hide in and take unsuspecting travellers by surprise. There hadn't been a proper path cleared between Twinleaf and Sandgem in years and it was simply wild and overgrown by now.

"Uh Barry, I hate to burst your bubble," she said flatly. "But how do we get there? We don't have any pokémon with us and mum says never go into long grass without a pokémon." Barry rolled his eyes at Lizzie – always the worrier.  
"Lizzie, Lizzie, Lizzie," he sighed heavily, draping an arm over her shoulders. "You need to stop going by the book on this stuff. I've already got a plan." He jumped in front of her, bent forward slightly, hands splayed out. "So you know how wild pokémon jump out of the long grass at you? Well if you just run to the next patch, you can avoid them! And we'll keep dashing until we reach Sandgem town!" He beamed but Lizzie still frowned, looking up the path. There were just too many variables to consider.

"I dunno Barry," Lizzie murmured. "If we're not fast enough-"  
"Don't worry I'll protect you!" Barry declared, hand to his chest.  
"If anyone needs protecting, it's you," Lizzie said dryly, again unimpressed. She was still unsure about the safety of Barry's plan – sure there were really only Bidoof and Starly along this route so they were generally weak pokémon anyway, but without any way of defending themselves, the thoughts of teeth and claws suddenly seemed more painful. But Barry, as per usual, wasn't having it.

"Fine, then I'll go without you!" He shot her a defiant look in egging her on before deflating at her lack of reaction except a cocked eyebrow. "Come on, I promise it'll be fine Liz! I'll go first and prove it! Ready!" He backed up, ready to charge. "And go-!"  
"HOLD IT!" Lizzie jumped and Barry fell over in shock as a loud, booming voice rang in their ears.

Just as Barry straightened up and looked around, the owner of the voice strode over. It was an old man with white hair and a big moustache, dressed in a dark trench coat and blue sweater. He glared at the two teens, towering over them. "What is the meaning of this? It doesn't look as though you have a single pokémon between you."  
"Liz, isn't this old guy Professor Rowan?" Barry hissed. Lizzie stamped on Barry's foot, causing him to hiss in pain.  
"Shh, you idiot, that's rude," Lizzie hissed back. Rowan glowered at the pair before turning away, scratching his chin and muttering to himself. "So much for your big plan genius."  
Barry looked affronted. "What? It could have worked!"  
"Not if Professor Rowan stopped us, it wouldn't have. It was stupid from the beginning!" Before the boy could retaliate to the remark, Rowan caught them off guard again.

"You two!" They jumped at least a foot in the air as Rowan turned back to them once more. "Do you love pokémon?" They were stunned for a moment, not quite expecting that question before they found their voices to answer.  
"Yes sir, of course I do," Lizzie replied firmly.  
"Me too! I love pokémon too!" Barry said, like an eager five year old. Rowan frowned.  
"I'll ask again, do you two truly love pokémon?" It was their turn to frown at him.  
"Why ask us that again?" Barry cried. "You could ask us a hundred times and the answer will never change: we love pokémon! Right Lizzie?" Lizzie nodded in agreement, wondering just what it was that Professor Rowan was getting at. Rowan turned away again, clearly in deep thought. When he next spoke, he was only addressing himself.

"They wanted pokémon so they tried to go through the long grass without one... Is it right to entrust a pokémon to someone like that...?" Barry bit his lip hard.  
"Please give a pokémon to my friend!" He said loudly, catching the Professor by surprise. "It was my idea to go through the grass – she tried to talk me out of it but I didn't listen! It's all my fault sir." Rowan looked at Barry in surprise mingled with admiration for the bold boy stood before him, seemingly making a decision.  
"How very big of you," he praised. "Very well then, I shall entrust you both with your own pokémon!"

Lizzie felt her heart skip a beat. What? This was supposed to be just humouring Barry with an idea, not actually getting _a pokémon of her own_! Rowan looked around for a second, frowning.  
"Now where did I-?"  
"Professor!" Lizzie, Barry and Rowan all looked up and saw a dark haired boy run up somewhat awkwardly. It was understandable considering the fact he was carrying what appeared to be a large suitcase. "You left it at the lake sir."  
"Ah thank you Lucas," Rowan said, clapping his hands together before taking the case from the boy who now looked curiously at the two other teens, eyes narrowing suddenly.  
"Is something wrong sir?" He asked suspiciously, hand hovering near his belt over a pokeball that hung there. Lizzie frowned at him – did they look like they were causing trouble?

"No no my dear boy," Rowan brushed him off. "I was merely about to entrust these two with their own pokémon." Lucas looked up between the professor, Barry and Lizzie in shock and indignation.  
"But sir! These pokémon were so difficult to obtain, they're necessary for our research and you're just giving them away?!" He snapped angrily, but Rowan raised a hand which silenced the boy.  
"There comes a time in everyone's life when they must experience the world around them. To that end, pokémon are necessary in that first step and these two are ready for that step."

He turned back to the pair stood before him and held out the brief case, opening it up. Inside were stacks of papers strewn across the bottom, but sat on top of them were three pokeballs. "Inside are the pokémon Piplup, Chimchar and Turtwig." Rowan set the case on the ground and proceeded to open each pokeball in turn. Out of the first came Piplup – it was a small blue penguin that immediately puffed up its chest. The second was Chimchar, a small orange monkey with a flame on its rear that seemed unable to stop fidgeting on the spot. Then finally was Turtwig, a green turtle with a stem growing out of its forehead which smiled serenely in a very laid back manner.

All three small pokémon looked up at the two teens curiously, though for Piplup it was more out of its eye, trying not to indicate too much interest at the two blondes.  
"Whoa, look at them all," Lizzie breathed. "They're all so much more interesting in person." Barry grinned at his friend and gestured her to them.  
"Go ahead Liz, you pick first," he insisted. "I am practically an adult after all." Lizzie snorted. Now trying to live up to Rowan's view of 'how big' he was it seemed.

Lizzie made to say Piplup: it was always her first choice in any imaginary battle with Barry in her childhood. Water types were interesting, really flexible and could present different challenges for trainers, and Piplup's pride would certainly make it an interesting challenge to bond with the penguin pokémon. But then her eyes strayed to Chimchar. Its bright grey eyes sparkled up at her, locking onto her blue pair and an instant connection formed, drawing her to the little fire type. She didn't know what it was exactly, but she couldn't stop the words from falling out of her mouth.

"I'll take Chimchar please." Barry snapped out of his wonder in mild surprise. He had been certain that Piplup would have been her first choice but he grinned anyway as she picked up the fire type monkey who chattered happily at his new trainer, throwing its arms around her neck in joy at being chosen as Rowan handed Lizzie the pokeball.  
"Alright then, I'll take Piplup!" Barry declared, hoisting the blue penguin into his arms with a wide grin. "I always preferred Piplup – I just let you choose it in our games because I'm a gentleman." Lizzie just gave him a look that said 'yeah right' before returning her attention to her new partner. Rowan nodded, handing Barry his pokeball and seemed pleased with the arrangement.

"Good. Now just so you know, that these particular pokémon are both males," he pointed out. "And both of them are as unfamiliar with the world as you are and so the start of your journey is the start of theirs. Come by my lab in Sandgem town if you need anything – Lucas, we'd best be off." Lizzie looked around at the boy, who just nodded and gave the Professor his brief case. Rowan gave the pair a nod and went off on his way, Lucas in tow. Lizzie looked down at Chimchar and suddenly felt the reality sink in.

This Chimchar, the one sitting in her arms right now, was hers. He looked back up at her and beamed widely and that made her want to smile too.  
"Well Chimchar, it's nice to meet you," Lizzie grinned. "I'm Lizzie."  
"Char! Chahahaha!" He chattered happily before climbing onto her shoulder and pawing at her hair in curiosity. "Char..." Barry laughed as he began trying to untangle the knots he found and Lizzie tried not to sound at all pained by his actions.  
"Hi Piplup, I'm Barry! Nice to meet ya!" Piplup just stuck its beak into the air and Barry frowned. "Hey that's not too friendly you know."

Lizzie shook her head in amusement as Chimchar hooked himself back over her shoulder, now pawing at her cheek. "You know what they say about Piplup. It's supposed to be a really proud pokémon, remember? It might take a little time to bond with you know."  
"What? Oh c'mon." Barry pouted at his new partner, before grinning again. "Well okay then, there's only one way to get started on becoming friends then!" He set the penguin on the ground before pointing dramatically at Lizzie. "The time has finally come! Lizzie, I challenge you to a pokémon battle!"

Lizzie could have cried for laughter at his enthusiasm and Barry's face turned a fierce red as she stood there laughing at him. "What's so funny?! I WANNA BATTLE YOU! C'MON LET'S HAVE A REAL BATTLE! STOP LAUGHING AT ME!"  
Lizzie just laughed even harder before calming herself, wiping away beads of moisture from the corners of her eyes. "S-sorry," she giggled. "But... Oh god Barry, you crack me up... Okay okay, I'll stop now and I accept your challenge!"

-{P}-

Both friends ran to face each other, leaving a large space between them for their pokémon. Chimchar and Piplup stood before their respective trainers, instinctively knowing what was going on. Neither was willing to disappoint their new trainer in their first bout. Lizzie quickly ran through her head the moves Chimchar should know – Scratch and Leer were for definite.  
If he had learnt Ember yet was irrelevant, seeing as it wouldn't be effective on Piplup anyway and Lizzie wasn't willing to make the mistake of ordering an attack Chimchar didn't know. His ability was Blaze, but hopefully that wouldn't need to come into effect anyway. It powered up fire type moves when Chimchar was pushed close to his limits.

"You have the first move Lizzie! I am a gentleman after all," Barry said, smirking smugly. Lizzie on the other hand just smirked right back.  
"Thanks. Okay Chimchar, use Leer and follow up with Scratch!" Chimchar glared at Piplup, who flinched at the sudden face Chimchar was pulling, before the fire type leapt forwards and slashed downwards with one paw, sending Piplup reeling backwards and with angry red marks appearing across its face.  
"Ah Piplup! I'm gonna make you pay for that!" Barry cried in indignation. "Piplup use Bubble!"  
The penguin looked up at its trainer with his head cocked to one side, clearly confused by the command. "Pip?" Lizzie could have laughed – Piplup hadn't learnt Bubble yet. As Barry flailed to correct his mistake, Lizzie took the opening.

"Chimchar, use Leer once more!" He pulled the face, causing Piplup to flinch once more and let its guard down. "Now use Scratch again!"  
"Piplup, counter with Pound!" Barry yelled. The penguin, determined to make up for Barry's blunder, faced down Chimchar as the fire monkey shot forwards once again, before side stepping him and smacking the back of his head hard with his fin. Chimchar tumbled head over heels, landing hard on the ground and clutching the back of his head in pain when Piplup had struck. "Now use growl!" Piplup let out a guttural noise and it was Chimchar's turn to flinch in fear. "Pound again!"

"Chimchar dodge and climb into the tree!" Lizzie ordered. Chimchar leapt out of the way just in time, scaling the tree trunk and disappearing into the branches. "Now use Scratch!" For a moment, there was no response but Chimchar leapt out from the topmost branches and used his momentum to power up the impact of its scratch attack. Piplup sailed through the air and landed hard on the ground. He was down but not out, as he struggled back to his feet. Lizzie knew it was almost over as she commanded: "Chimchar, finish this with one more Scratch!"

Barry, determined to have another attack hit, yelled: "Piplup, use Pound!" The two pokémon ran at each other, ready to collide in the middle. Chimchar raised its paw, Piplup's fin doing the same and both struck as hard as possible, skidding to a halt whilst back to back. For a moment, it seemed the battle would continue, when Piplup suddenly fell face first to the ground, unable to battle. Chimchar looked around at his opponent and beamed, dancing cheerfully on the spot.  
"Way to go Chimchar!" Lizzie praised, opening her arms and allowing the chimp to leap into her arms for a congratulatory cuddle. "You were excellent, and so good for your first battle as well!"  
"Char!" He wrapped his arms around Lizzie's neck, nuzzling his head into her collar bone affectionately whilst Barry picked up Piplup, who looked very sorry for itself.

"Don't feel bad Piplup," he encouraged. "You were really great you know!"  
"Pip?" He looked up at him curiously, though still looking quite upset.  
"Yeah, really! I mucked up back there and you still battled hard! We'll get 'em next time," he promised before turning his attention to Lizzie. "You totally beat us, but it was a lot of fun! We should head back home and let them rest now, right?" Lizzie nodded in agreement, taking the red lump forming on Chimchar's head from where Piplup's Pound had hit into account and the two new trainers walked back into town to let their pokémon rest up.

-{P}-

Lizzie said farewell to Barry as he disappeared into his house, which was next door to her own, before heading up the steps of the front porch with Chimchar still in her arms as she nudged the front door open.  
"I'm back," Lizzie called, kicking her shoes off by the door. Chimchar meanwhile was staring around the room in fascination at his new environment. Hannah, Lizzie's mother, entered the hallway from the living room.

"Hello darling, what did you and Barry get up to-?" She trailed off at the sight of her daughter holding the Chimchar in her arms. "A pokémon?"  
"Long story," Lizzie laughed, setting Chimchar on the floor carefully. "Mum, this is Chimchar. Chimchar, this is my mum." The monkey looked up at Hannah in curiosity, seemingly too nervous to approach her upright and instead remained close to Lizzie. "Barry wanted to go and ask Professor Rowan for a pokémon... In the end, Professor Rowan found us and let us pick one."  
"Really?" Hannah raised her eyebrows and smiled at Chimchar, crouching down to his level. "Hello Chimchar. He looks a little banged up darling."

Lizzie rubbed the back of her neck, grinning sheepishly. "Yeah, me and Barry had a battle. He couldn't even wait five minutes before challenging me." Hannah laughed this time as Chimchar approached her, sniffing her offered hand.  
"He never was a patient one." She gently scratched Chimchar's chin. "Ooh, that's a nasty bump there sweetie. I'll get it an ice pack, shall I?" She offered, straightening up.  
"He's a boy and thanks mum," Lizzie said with a laugh, letting Chimchar climb back onto her shoulder. "She can be a little over bearing sometimes, but you'll get used to her," she assured her new partner.

When Hannah returned, they sat in the living room together whilst Lizzie retold the whole story to her mother, the latter clicking her tongue.  
"Well at least you remembered how dangerous those wild pokémon can be. Silly boy," she muttered. Chimchar, bored of sitting with the ice pack to the now non-existent lump, began to explore the room and Lizzie could have laughed as her mother watched him from the corner of her eye.  
Clearly she was concerned the pokémon might break something and Lizzie could understand that – Chimchar were renowned for their rambunctious attitude and high energy. Trainers always had to be ready to cope with that sort of behaviour and Lizzie was sure she would be alright. She had been coping with Barry for years after all. "So darling, what are you going to do now?"  
"Huh?" Lizzie, who had been watching Chimchar as it stared down her mother's clay Donphan ornament, looked up at the sudden question.

Hannah rolled her eyes. "What are you going to do now? Surely you won't just stay here now? You have a pokémon of your own – you could travel. Chase down that old dream you and Barry used to have. Or just see new places." She looked up at her daughter, suddenly looking much older than before. "Don't you want to see what waits outside of this town? Don't waste your youth love. Go out and enjoy it." Lizzie stared for a moment and looked down at Chimchar again who was now climbing the curtains to get a better look at the vase of flowers.

Her mother was right, she could go anywhere now. Chimchar gave her the ability to do that. And didn't Professor Rowan say that this Chimchar hadn't seen much of the world either... It wasn't fair if it didn't see anything further than Twinleaf town. Lizzie then thought of Barry who would likely physically drag her all the way to Snowpoint and Sunyshore if he had to, whether she wanted to go or not. And not to mention that she may regret it someday. Not taking the chance to travel whilst she was free, seeing new places whilst she wasn't tied down.  
Chasing a childhood dream before it was too late to do anything. But at the same time... There was that lingering fear – what if she wasn't good enough to travel? What if she got terribly lost? What if she couldn't raise Chimchar well? What if she failed and ended up wishing she had just stayed at home?  
What was it her father had once said?

Hannah seemed to have the same thought. "When I first met your father, I asked him why he travelled. He was so scared of the idea, but he went anyway. I asked why and he just said: 'your comfort zone makes you feel safe. But nothing grows there.' I think, darling, if you travel then you can grow in a way I never did. I had the opportunity once and never took it. I stayed at home and now I wonder if it was worth staying where I felt safe." She stared wistfully at Chimchar, who was sticking his head into the lilies and sneezed when he snorted up a load of pollen into his nose, falling off of the window sill and onto the back of the sofa where Lizzie was sat.  
The chimp scrambled into his trainer's lap, looking at the flowers with great distrust causing both women to laugh. "I'm not saying you have to go darling, but maybe you should. It could help you grow... Goodness knows Barry needs to." They laughed again and even Chimchar chittered along with them.

After a few minutes, Lizzie fell into thought. "...I know Barry will go. Definitely. But I don't want to just because he is..."  
"Well you and Barry have been together a very long time. My, if I didn't know any better, I'd say you were twins," Hannah laughed. "And he's always stuck up for you."  
That was very true. Growing up, Lizzie had been bullied a lot and back in those days she hadn't been as resilient towards insults as she was today. It was always Barry who stuck up for her and made her laugh after someone said something nasty to her – it was Barry who helped Lizzie find her own confidence and helped her stand up for herself. If it weren't for Barry, Lizzie might not have found the courage to pick her first pokémon today. But she didn't want to depend on his strength just to find hers.

If she went on a journey, she wanted it to be for herself and her new partner, not her best friend. Because she knew as much as she loved Barry like a brother, they wouldn't be together forever and would one day separate for their own different goals. Barry, to defeat his father at the Battle Frontier; Lizzie... Whatever she decided for herself.  
But perhaps travelling would help her decide. Let her see and experience new things.

Travelling could very well lead her where she wanted to go. So that evening, after thinking long and hard over dinner and right up through the evening, Lizzie finally made her decision. She would set out tomorrow afternoon and would spend the morning packing and preparing.  
Following that old childhood dream of the Pokémon League seemed like a good place to start – Oreburgh city had the nearest gym and it was just beyond Jubilife city. On the way, she would stop in Sandgem town to see Professor Rowan and report on her progress with Chimchar.

She discussed this plan with her mother, who would call the school house and inform them that Lizzie would be leaving to travel before recommending she stop by the Trainer's school to brush up on any information that might help in the long run and in the end, she went to bed feeling very much awake and too excited, reckless and terrified to sleep. Chimchar was curled up on the end of the bed – Lizzie hadn't felt like putting him back in his pokeball and was starting to doubt she would at this rate. She quite liked the little chimp's company. And if it weren't for him anyway, she wouldn't be going on this journey in the first place. She owed him that much.

-{P}-

There was a sudden _thunk_ against the glass pane of the window and Lizzie sat up, careful not to disturb Chimchar. She peered out between the curtains and rolled her eyes. Barry. He was in his pyjamas, orange striped jacket on top, stones in hand as he threw them up at the window.

Lizzie slipped out of bed, reaching for her jacket and slipping her feet into her boots before creeping down the stairs. Her mother had long since gone to bed and the house was silent. She quickly found the key and unlocked the front door, stepping outside into the freezing air. Barry grinned and Lizzie locked the door behind her and stepped down onto the path to join her friend.

They set off together, walking side by side, arms linked. They did this often when they knew neither of them could sleep. They could talk and enjoy each other's company whilst burning some energy which might help them sleep later. Whether or not anyone else knew they did this, they didn't know nor care. For a while, neither of them spoke as the cool air bit at their skin through their clothes. But when they started to talk, Barry initiated the conversation.

"Lizzie." Lizzie looked around at her best friend who looked and sounded strangely serious for once. "I'm going to start travelling tomorrow."  
Lizzie smiled knowingly – of course he was. "Funny, so am I," she commented.  
"Seriously?" He asked in surprise. "I wasn't sure if you would."  
"Why wouldn't I?" She asked, raising her eyebrows at him. It was damn odd for Barry to be this serious or relaxed. But he'd be back to normal tomorrow, for sure.

Barry frowned. "You always seemed more comfortable here. I wasn't sure you'd leave."  
"'Your comfort zone makes you feel safe. But nothing grows there'," she quoted, thinking of her conversation earlier that day. "My dad said that once. I want to see new places, experience new things. Maybe then I'll decide what I want." Barry grinned at her.  
"Good. You need to be more decisive, like me." He puffed out his chest and Lizzie had to try not to laugh too hard, considering it was about two in the morning. He really did resemble his Piplup in so many ways – they were definitely made for each other. "So when do you head out? Are you ready?"

She shook her head. "No, I only decided a few hours ago. I've decided where I'm going and what I'm doing – the Pokémon League you know. I'm spending the morning packing and preparing – I'll probably leave at about one o'clock." Barry raised his eyebrows. "I guess you've already done all of that then?"  
He threw his chest out again, looking even more like his Piplup. "Of course, I knew from the get go I was gonna go. I don't mull on things like you do." To this, Lizzie shoved him on the arm, rolling her eyes as she did so.  
"No you just dive head first with that 'act first, think never' attitude of yours," she teased. They were like this, constantly teasing and mucking around. They had been best friends forever and knew each other's limits and what was acceptable and what was territory they should never cross into.

After a while, they came full circle and were back at their houses again.  
Lizzie stepped onto her porch, pulling the door key out of her pocket. "Night Barry," she waved.  
"Night Liz, see you tomorrow." He paused for a moment and seemed to be struck by a thought. "Oh yeah, Liz! Tomorrow, before you head out, meet me at Lake Verity!" Lizzie frowned in confusion, but before she could inquire further, he disappeared into his own house and the click of the lock indicated he was off to bed. Lizzie sighed in exasperation. Some things never changed and Barry was one of those things.

She let herself back into the house and as she locked the door, she was surprised to find Chimchar sat there, evidently waiting for her to come back. He let out a cry, leaping into her arms. Of course, the little pokémon hadn't understood where she had gone.  
"Sorry, were you worried?" She asked quietly, feeling like a mother talking to a small child. "It's alright, let's go back to bed. We've got a big day tomorrow, you know."

And quietly, Lizzie crept back up the stairs – the gentle breathing from Hannah's room indicated that her mother was none the wiser to her daughter's midnight stroll. Lizzie peeled off her shoes and jacket and lay down in bed, Chimchar curling up into her stomach this time and, the twinge of excitement tempered by nerves was the last thing Lizzie thought about as she drifted off to sleep.

**To Be Continued...**

**Woo, first chapter of my Platinum travel fic! I've been writing a fic called Truth and Lies which, to be honest, is giving me some major trouble (aka my main character is being completely uncooperative right now and doesn't want to be written) when this idea walked into my head. I decided to get away from Truth and Lies for now and started this - characterisation has been really fun and I'm hoping that will continue into the future. **

**This fic is based on the games, but in terms of gym leaders and the Elite Four I might lend from their anime personalities. I'll see what happens. This does mean, however, Ash and his friends will not be appearing. When Dawn appears, it will not be as her anime incarnation so don't expect her to appear in contests. And yes, this means Lizzie's character model is not Dawn's and therefore does not look like Dawn with another name attached.**

**Please review - harsh criticism will not be well received even if meant with the best intentions, but anything that will help me strive to do better and that I can use in my writing to improve will be more than welcome :)**


	2. Getting to the Starting Line!

Sunday was meant to be a day of rest, where shops were usually shut and people usually spent the day relaxing to ready their minds and bodies for the coming week. Even Barry seemed to obey that one rule on a regular basis, so Lizzie, groggy and half asleep, was confused as to why he was jumping on her bed yelling: "Wake up! C'mon eat your breakfast and start packing! WAKE UP WAKE UP WAKE UP!" Chimchar did not appreciate the violent wakeup call, screeching in shock and leaping on top of the wardrobe and was now glaring at the overexcited boy who was now shaking his best friend. "LIZZIE TODAY WE START TRAVELLING SO WAKE UP!" With one swift movement, Barry was the one sent flying across the room and crashing to the floor as Lizzie sat up very suddenly. Her eyes were wide, her hair sticking out at odd angles and badly knotted as the memories of the previous day flooded back to her. She shot out of bed, grabbing the towel from the radiator and disappearing to the bathroom to shower.

Barry was still overcoming his shock at Lizzie jumping out of bed so quickly – that never happened. She really was excited after all. He grinned and raced back downstairs to leave Lizzie to her privacy. Lizzie wasted little time in the shower, forcing the comb through her hair and dragging out the knots painfully and letting the suds clean it of grease and dirt. She'd be saying goodbye to the comforts of home after all, so it was best to take advantage of them now. As soon as she was done, she hurried back to her room – Barry was downstairs it seemed – and dried herself before turning to the freshly laundered clothes her mother had left on the desk chair the night before. Dressing quickly into her jeans, t shirt and jacket, Lizzie dumped her towel and pyjamas into the wash basket. She wouldn't need them whilst she was away. Hannah called up the stairs. "Lizzie darling, it's time for breakfast."

"Coming mum," she shouted back. "Come on Chimchar!" The chimp scrambled down from the wardrobe and up onto his trainer's shoulder before she took the stairs two at a time. She arrived in the kitchen where Barry was lounging in one of the chairs, looking at his Pokétch. He looked around and grinned as Lizzie took a seat.

"You took your time," he said. "I should fine you for that."

Lizzie stuck out her tongue at him before accepting her plate from her mother. "Thanks mum. So Barry, what are you doing here at this time of morning? And on a Sunday no less."

"We're gonna go Lake Verity remember?!" He said excitedly, eyes gleaming.

"Lake Verity?" Hannah asked, as she flipped another pancake at the cooker. "Why are you kids going there on today of all days?"

"It's a secret!" Barry answered, looking like a five year old. Lizzie just gave her mother a look that said she had no idea either to which Hannah cocked an eyebrow. Barry really did always drag his best friend along for every adventure, but usually he always said what they were up to first.

Lizzie shook her head at his pestering before looking around with a rather blunt expression on her face. "Barry, I have to pack this morning. And why is it so important anyway?"

"BECAUSE IT IS!" He whined loudly. "I promise is super important! I'll help pack if it means you'll hurry up!"

"I can manage without thanks," Lizzie said shortly, continuing with her breakfast.

"Pancake Barry?" Hannah offered slipping it onto a plate. Distracted by the prospect of food, Barry dropped his next comment and leapt to his feet to accept the plate and practically bolted it down, Hannah chuckling as he did so. "Nice to know it's appreciated."

Lizzie looked up at her mother, looking amused. "I doubt it even touched the sides of his mouth. Barry doesn't taste anyway." She shot a look at him sideways, smirking. "He inhales." Barry shot back at that and Hannah just laughed, turning back to the cooker as the pair continued to bicker with one another. Some things really never changed.

-{P}-

After breakfast was done, Lizzie was now going through her draws and deeming what was unnecessary and what was, before going through the necessary pile and cutting it down to the very basics. Barry meanwhile was helping Hannah sort out the gear she would need for the journey – Barry had spent the whole of the previous day packing and preparing and was ready to leave at a moment's notice. He was actually quite helpful and knew what was most essential and what could be parted with.

"Tents are helpful and all, but then you've gotta carry them everywhere which can be really heavy and impractical, plus you've got to find the time to set them up and then there's times when a tent just can't be pitched," he explained to Hannah. "But you could just use a thermal sleeping bag and on nights with bad weather, there are always caves for shelter or using plastic sheets like this one for cover. They take up way less space and are a lot lighter."

"I see, you really do know what you're doing don't you Barry?" She compliment, trying not to laugh as he puffed up his chest in pride. "Now I think we have some fold up cooking equipment here... Here we go!"

Lizzie could hear them from her room and could practically imagine Barry's look of fascination as her mother showed him the collapsible mug. He was possibly the most easily impressed person she had ever met, though it was a more difficult matter to get him to slow down and appreciate it first. Lizzie threw a pair of shorts unceremoniously into the unnecessary pile – the whole regions climate had lowered in the past few years and the only places that were particularly warm were Valour Lake front and Sunyshore city. Considering that Sunyshore would be her last gym and therefore a very long time away for what would likely be a short visit, it wasn't worth carrying them around. She was more concerned about the route to Snowpoint city. That was no doubt a more dangerous trip than the rest of Sinnoh... Best to be prepared far in advance for that one.

Barry bounded into the room, arms laden with camping equipment, Hannah a little way behind him, dumping the things on the bed. Lizzie grinned as Barry launched into an explanation on all the choices made in terms of her equipment they had chosen.

"You know," Lizzie cut through halfway once she had finally been able to cut her clothing down to an absolute minimum and began folding them up for packing. "I could have sworn this was my journey, not yours Barry." The blonde snorted and just continued on anyway, both women exchanging a look of amusement, particularly when Barry found himself distracted by the collapsible cooking pot. Soon, Lizzie had everything folded, collapsed and packed neatly into her bag in a way that it didn't weigh half a ton much to her delight. How they managed to get it all into one single bag was anyone's guess, but that didn't matter so long as it was all there and even with a little room to spare.

There was all the equipment she would need and enough changes of clothing that would last a few days and would be suitable for most conditions, along with more specialised gear for the trips up north to Snowpoint. Hannah had even taken the liberty of buying some potions and other medicines for Lizzie and Barry from the market which would last them a while before they needed to stock up again. Preserved food for both Lizzie and her pokémon were also a necessity.

By the time they had finished and Barry had gone home to recheck his own bag and add his new medicines to it, it was lunchtime and Lizzie, Hannah and Chimchar sat down to eat, the two humans discussing Lizzie's route via the town map.

"First I'll go to Sandgem town and stop in to see Professor Rowan," Lizzie said, tracing out the route with her finger. "Then head through the forest to Jubilife. That should take me up until dusk – I can stop in the Pokémon Centre over night and head east to Oreburgh city."

"Hm, Roark is the gym leader there," Hannah noted, recalling her childhood in that very city. "He specialises in Rock types – Chimchar will have a tough time in that gym."

Lizzie nodded. "Right, Fire types are at a disadvantage to rock types. But Chimchar can evolve into Monferno, which is part Fighting type which gives it an advantage. But..."

"But there's no saying how long it may take to train Chimchar to evolve into Monferno," Hannah finished the thought. "I'd suggest trying to catch a pokémon that has an advantage over rock types. It won't guarantee a victory, but it gives you an edge." Lizzie just ate her lunch, studying the map. After Oreburgh, she would head for Eterna. It might have made more sense to head for Canalave to the west of Jubilife but word was that Byron was one of the toughest gym leaders in Sinnoh. It'd be fairly stupid to try and challenge him so early on. From Eterna, she would head for Veilstone and then Hearthome before heading south to Pastoria city. By then, Lizzie was sure Canalave would be less of a problem and then there was Snowpoint.

It made sense going to Snowpoint later rather than sooner – only more experienced travellers took the challenge of traversing route 216 due to the sheer difficulty of the natural environment. The thick snow was one thing, the blizzards were another. Getting lost that way could land a trainer in serious trouble so it was highly advised that rookies stick to the southern regions of Sinnoh until they were more experienced. Thankfully there were mountain patrols, so any hard heads that did get lost were often found and brought to safety quickly.

Once Snowpoint was out of the way, Sunyshore was the last stop before the Pokémon League and for good reason. For one thing, it was closest to the League, with ferries heading to and from the entrance to Victory Road and the fact that the gym leader was the strongest in all of Sinnoh. It was natural to leave the Sunyshore gym for last based on that logic.

Lizzie glanced up at the clock. Quarter past twelve. She sighed and stood up. "I'd better see what Barry wants at Lake Verity. I'll be back later."

"Right, just remember to be back for one," her mother reminded as Lizzie left, Chimchar in tow. Lizzie just waved as she shut the front door behind her and making her way towards Route 201.

Barry was waiting at the entrance to Verity Lakefront, leaning against the sign impatiently. He looked up, grinning and Lizzie rolled her eyes. "Okay genius I'm here. What is it you're up to?" Barry stood in front of her, smirking.

"Alright, I suppose I can fill you in now, slowpoke. Professor Rowan did us a huge favour in giving us pokémon, right?" Lizzie nodded, wondering where he was going with this. "I say we have to thank him properly!"

"Whoa Barry, you taking the time to thank someone? Did you hit your head on something?" Barry just carried on, ignoring the scathing remark.

"You know they say a legendary pokémon lives in Lake Verity? I say we catch it for the Professor!" Lizzie stared at him for a solid minute, blinking as she tried to affirm he had really just said that. But before she could say anything, Barry turned around and shouted: "TO LAKE VERITY! COME ON LIZZIE!"

"Barry!" She seized his wrist. "You want to catch the _Legendary _pokémon that lives in Lake Verity? The one that no one has ever seen, let alone caught! Really, did you fall out of bed extra hard this morning?" Barry frowned at her lack of praise for his plan.

"Oh come on, it's a good idea!" He complained, folding his arms over his chest. Lizzie groaned.

"Barry only Frontier Brains and Champions can catch Legendary Pokémon. You know, because they're frickin' _LEGENDARY_! Way too powerful for us to even lay a scratch on! Let alone catch!" Lizzie pointed out, completely irritated at this point. This really was a complete waste of time. "And this is why you hung around earlier? To drag me off on a wild Swanna chase?"

"It is not a wild Swanna chase! The sign says it's here and together, you and me can do anything! Together we've got _nothing_ to fear!" He insisted, getting more and more agitated. Lizzie crossed her arms over her chest adamantly.

"Barry it's stupid idea, let's just go back already."

"IT'S NOT STUPID-!"

"Stand aside."

A very sudden chill washed over the arguing teens, a shadow falling over them as they looked up slowly at whoever was addressing them. It was a man; he was much taller than them with a weathered face, his eyes empty and his voice equally emotionless, his hair spiked back and his attire was very odd indeed, loosely resembling a space suit. Nonetheless, Barry and Lizzie leapt aside and allowed him to sweep past and out of sight along the road.

"Whoa, what was that about?" Barry muttered after a minute. "Weird guy." Lizzie didn't like the look of him much either, shivering from the sudden cold he had left in his wake. But before they could dwell any further on the mysterious stranger, there was a musical cry from the direction of the lake, one unlike any they had ever heard. They both turned and ran towards the lake bank, staring out across the water. But there was no sign of what caused the sound. "That must have been it! The Legendary Pokémon! Let's catch it-! Wait... Uh..."

Lizzie, who was still looking across the lake for any sign of the cry's source, turned back to Barry who was fumbling through his pockets, Piplup's pokeball clenched in his teeth.

"Ah, we've not got any on us! No pokeballs! You know, pokeballs? P-O-K-accent-E balls!" Lizzie rolled her eyes – last she checked, he was the one who always misspelt it. "Without them, we can't catch any pokémon!" That, though, was a good point.

No pokeballs meant as Barry said – they couldn't catch more pokémon. And if they couldn't catch more pokémon, it would make battling a hell of a lot harder than it needed to be, seeing as there was no type balance or reserves if your pokémon was left unable to battle. It was a major problem. "Hey, Lizzie." She looked up at Barry. "Do you think Professor Rowan would give us some if we asked? I mean, he did say go to him if we needed anything."

"That's a good point..." Lizzie murmured thoughtfully. "Alright then, that's what we'll do." Barry looked shocked – Lizzie was actually _agreeing _with what he was saying. That was the second time today she'd done something weird and now it was just creeping him out. "Barry, you okay? I didn't just grow an extra head did I?" Barry didn't reply, he just raced back towards Twinleaf.

-{P}-

Lizzie did a last minute sweep of her room, checking nothing was left behind or out of a draw. The once untidy room now looked brand new – the duvet was laid straight and neat over the bed for the first time in forever, though there were still creases from when it was usually left just tossed to one side. The desk was no longer cluttered and the wardrobe stood ajar, being somewhat emptier than before. Chimchar pulled out an old sock from under the bed, chattering at his trainer as he held it up.

"Thanks buddy," Lizzie said. "I'll put it in the draw – I'd say I've got enough to last." Chimchar sniffed the bag curiously as she did so, before Lizzie picked it up and slung the strap over her shoulder before offering her arm to Chimchar who climbed up it to sit on her shoulder just as Hannah entered the room. "I'd say we're all set to go."

"I have to agree," Hannah replied smiling and patting Chimchar on the head. "You look so grown up dear."

"Mum," Lizzie moaned, rolling her eyes. "I'm fifteen." Hannah shook her head, running a hand through Lizzie's hair affectionately.

"I know darling. Now, you've got everything you need? All of your clothes? All of your equipment?" She asked, playing the role of the worrying, mildly smothering parent perfectly.

"Yes mum, I've got it all. Stop worrying about it," Lizzie muttered. Hannah rolled her eyes this time, but didn't say much more on the matter when there was a knock on the front door. "Probably Barry, though he normally just barges in."

They made their way downstairs and to the door, however it wasn't Barry at the door. It was his mother, looking half concerned, half exasperated.

"I'm sorry but is my little Barry here?" She asked.

"No I'm afraid not," Hannah replied, frowning slightly.

Barry's mother sighed, running a hand through her short brown hair in irritation. "That boy... He ran in and shouted about going on an adventure and bolted before I could say a word. I at least wanted him to take this." Lizzie noticed the package in her hand and stepped forward.  
"I could take it for you," she offered. "I'm headed the same way as Barry anyway."

"Would you dear? Oh thank you," she said, looking relieved. "That's one less thing to worry about." Lizzie insisted it was no problem before turning to her mother, granting one last goodbye before setting off down the road once more.

-{P}-

The sign post for Route 201 stood before them, the path to Sandgem town as long and overgrown as ever. Lizzie looked at Chimchar and smiled. "Are you ready to go then?"

"Char!" He chirped excitedly, punching the air.

"Okay then, just stick with me." Lizzie set off down the road, having only been this way a few times in the past and that was with her father. She remembered when a wild Bidoof leapt out of the grass, took one look at her father's Torterra and fled without even making one attack. But in spite of her concerns the previous day, Lizzie made it to Sandgem with nothing eventful – not one pokémon jumped out and the grass didn't rustle a little. In fact the journey only took about fifteen minutes and Lizzie felt rather underwhelmed so far.

Sandgem Town was much bigger than Twinleaf town, with proper tarmac roads and more buildings. The salty sea breeze was still prominent in the air though and Lizzie could see the ocean glittering as the waves lapped up the beach. It was tempting to go take a closer look, but the Pokémon Lab was nearby and so Lizzie deemed it best to go and see Professor Rowan right away.

The lab itself was easy enough to find, just from how out of place it looked next to the civilian housing nearby. It looked far more technological and had its own wind turbine for supplying the lab with electricity. But before Lizzie could even open the door to go inside, a bright orange and blonde blur ran right into her with a _thump_ and knocked her to the ground.

"Hey watch where you're going! Oh it's you Lizzie." Lizzie huffed, brushing her hair out of her face. Barry was peering down at her, having just run into her in his constant rush to get to his next destination. Just behind Barry was Lucas who offered her a hand. Lizzie took it and allowed him to help her up, dusting herself off. "Oh yeah Liz, Professor Rowan isn't nearly as scary as he is out there! He's way scarier on TV, trust me! See ya!"

"Oi Barry, one sec!" He skidded to a stop, though didn't stop jogging on the spot.

"What, can't you see I need to get going?" He whined. Lizzie pulled out the package and thrust it into his hands.

"From your mum," she said bluntly. "Perhaps you should slow down more often." Barry was paying no attention and just ripped the paper away to reveal a town map.

"Huh, this could be useful," he mused and shoved it into his bag. "Lizzie, race you to Jubilife! See ya!" And with that, he was gone again. Lucas stared after him, though Lizzie was unbothered by Barry's sudden departure. It was normal after all.

"Your friend really is impatient. He didn't even wait for Professor Rowan to give him a pokédex," Lucas sighed, shaking his head before looking back at Lizzie. "The Professor would like to speak to you though and see how Chimchar's doing." He noticed the chimp perched on her shoulder. "Why isn't it in its pokeball?" Lizzie just shrugged – there was no particular reason. She just liked the company and Chimchar liked seeing everything around him. It was a win-win situation. Lucas just shrugged back and led her inside.

Professor Rowan seemed to be in conversation with one of his assistants when Lizzie and Lucas entered the room, the former looking up and nodding at the other man who took that as a cue that he was excused.

"Lizzie, good to see you. Hm?" He spotted Chimchar who was perched on her shoulder, staring at absolutely everything around him. "And I see Chimchar has bonded to you quite well. Do you mind?" He held out his hands and scooped the chimp up into his arms, looking at it for a moment before nodding and setting him back on the floor. "Yes, Chimchar seems quite happy. Astounding."

The professor looked thoughtful for a moment as Chimchar spotted Turtwig eating in the corner and ran off to play with it. "Yesterday I was shocked. Two foolhardy children were about to enter the long grass without pokémon because they wanted pokémon – I was astounded that you would do something so reckless." Lizzie looked at her feet, scuffing the floor with her toes.

Though she had been against the idea, she hadn't really tried to stop Barry from going. "However, now you've astounded me in a different way." She looked back up, surprised. "You have had Chimchar for a day and yet the two of you have developed a close bond. That's no laughing matter. Although Lizzie, I want you to promise me that you will not recklessly endanger yourself like that ever again."

"Yes sir, I promise," Lizzie said, nodding firmly. Rowan regarded her for a moment, before nodding, satisfied with her answer.

"Now on to the matter at hand: as I'm sure you are aware, as a Pokémon Professor it is my job to research the pokémon in Sinnoh. My particular field being pokémon evolution – 90% percent of pokémon are related through evolution, though there is much more to discover. That is why I am asking you this; would you travel through Sinnoh and fill in the pages of the pokédex to aid my research?" Lizzie frowned for a moment.

"How would I do that sir?" She asked, deciding she needed to know more before accepting or declining the request.

"A good question – it's quite simple." He picked up the device – it was dark blue with white accents – and opened it. There were two screens, both blank. "To register a pokémon, you simply point the pokédex at it and it will gather basic information such as its appearance and the locations it can be found. For further details, you need to catch the pokémon – at the very least, I ask you to simply gather basic information rather than catch every pokémon you meet. So Lizzie, would you do that favour for me?" Lizzie frowned for a moment.

In all honesty, it would be rude to decline, especially after he had given her Chimchar which, according to Lucas, was crucial to his research. And there was no harm in looking for pokémon, seeing as knowledge could be a powerful tool. Lizzie nodded.

"Of course sir, I'll try my best." Rowan nodded, smiling gratefully and handing the pokédex over.

"Excellent, I give you my gratitude. But remember, this journey is yours and yours alone – enjoy it. The pokédex is not to be your utmost priority," he instructed firmly. Lizzie nodded.

"The professor asked me to help out too," Lucas chipped in, pulling out his own. It was similar, but red in colour. "I guess that makes us comrades in filling the pokédex. Dawn too."

"Dawn?" Lizzie frowned, unfamiliar with the name.

Rowan waved it off. "Another assistant of mine, you'll no doubt meet her in future. Now off you go, there's much for you to see and do, isn't there?"

"Of course, thank you sir," Lizzie said, bowing respectfully and calling Chimchar over. He scurried back over, saying farewell to Turtwig, before climbing back onto Lizzie's shoulder.

Lucas stepped forwards. "I can teach you some stuff too, seeing as this is your first journey." Lizzie blinked but smiled.

"That'd be great, thank you." In truth, Lizzie was going to take advantage of whatever help she could get and despite her initial misgivings about Lucas from the previous day, he proved himself far friendlier than he first appeared to be. So together they both bayed Professor Rowan farewell, departing the lab.

However, they barely stepped foot out of the front door when he caught up to them.

"LIZZIE!" He hollered, effectively scaring them both senseless. When they stared at him in bewilderment, he coughed and held out a white disk to Lizzie who took it. "That is the TM for Return – it is a move that works better when the user is friendlier with its trainer. I trust you will put it to good use." And without another word, he turned on heel and disappeared back into the lab.

Lizzie and Lucas stared for a moment, confused. Lucas broke the silence first. "You're kidding me, the Professor has TMs? Next you'll be telling me he battled when he was young... Anyway." Lucas cleared his throat. "Follow me." Lizzie tucked the TM back into her bag and followed the boy down the road, Chimchar sitting on Lizzie's head as they walked. They came to a large building with a red roof and a pokeball on top. "This here is a Pokémon Centre. They'll heal your pokémon up for free – come on." He lead the way inside.

The building was just as large inside as it was out. "See in the back over there?" Lizzie followed Lucas' gaze and spotted the counter where two men stood talking with some older trainers. "You'll be able to buy things like potions and other medicines there. But because you're a new trainer, you won't be able to buy much. Then that's Nurse Joy."

The woman behind the main desk that Lucas was referring to had light pink hair and electric blue eyes that held nothing but kindness as she took a tray of pokeballs from a trainer, setting them in the machine behind her. "She'll heal your pokémon right up when they're hurt after battle. You can talk to her too if you need a room to stay in – you'll find it's the same in all pokémon centres," Lucas explained. "Now come on, I'll show you how to catch pokémon."

"Oh, but I don't have any pokeballs," Lizzie remembered suddenly. That had been Barry's main reason for going to Professor Rowan in the first place – there was no telling if he had actually gotten any. Lucas just smiled and pulled some out of his pocket.

"Here, you can have these," he said, giving them to her. "These are your standard pokeballs – you'll be able to buy higher grade pokeballs once you're a more experienced trainer."

Lizzie followed Lucas out of the centre, tucking the balls into her bag. "You keep saying about being a more experienced trainer to buy better items – how do you prove you are one?" Lucas looked thoughtful.

"Most places go off of the number of badges you have, or ribbons in you're a coordinator. But you'll often find you can just look at a trainer and tell whether they're experienced or not – they say you can just tell," he explained casually, hands in his pockets as they approached the edge of Sandgem, the sign for Route 202 appearing up ahead. "I wouldn't worry about it too much if I were you. Just work your way through Sinnoh and you'll find you'll have access to better items. Now, let's go catch a pokémon, shall we?"

-{P}-

Lucas led the way through the woods, coming across a large patch of tall grass. He seemed to have decided this was a good place to start. "Just watch what I do, then try it yourself. It's easier than you might think." Suddenly, a Bidoof appeared, staring down Lucas aggressively. Lizzie pulled out her pokédex and pointed it at Bidoof. An image of the pokémon appeared and several areas on a map of Sinnoh turned red, though nothing else came up. She tucked it away for now, electing to watch Lucas catch it.

"Turtwig, let's go!" He called, throwing his pokeball. The grass type tortoise appeared, glaring back at Bidoof, the complete opposite of the calm little Turtwig from the lab. "Now when catching a pokémon, its best to lower its health first to make it easier to catch," Lucas explained, taking advantage of Bidoof sizing up Turtwig. "Now Turtwig, use tackle!"

The grass type shot forwards with surprising speed and slammed head first into the normal type. Bidoof growled in response, scaring Turtwig long enough to tackle it right back. Turtwig staggered backwards, determined not to lose this fight. "One more attack should do. Turtwig use tackle once more!"

Turtwig slammed into Bidoof once more, sending it flying and before it could struggle back to its feet, Lucas pulled out a pokeball. "And now to catch it – go pokeball!" He threw the orb at the pokémon, which disappeared inside in the form of a red light. The ball wiggled back and forth a few times, before there was a _bong_ sound, followed by a small flash of light, indicating a successful capture.

Lucas picked up the ball and turned back to face Lizzie who was admittedly impressed. "And there we have it. One Bidoof caught. Inflict as much damage as you can to weaken the pokémon to make it easier to capture. Inflicting status ailments like paralysis or sleep will be a big help too. Then throw your pokeball and wait to see if it works. Just remember that healthier pokémon are harder to catch," he explained. "Why don't you have a go?"

Lizzie, smirking, stepped into the grass. For a moment, nothing happened before there was a cry and something small and feathery dive bombed the girl and her Chimchar. After stumbling backwards, Lizzie looked around for her attacker when they made themselves apparent. A Starly was fluttering before her and was singing raucously at them. She frowned at it and turned to Chimchar, nodding.

"Let's make this our first capture, shall we?" Chimchar nodded, chirping in agreement before jumping out to face the bird pokémon. Lizzie pulled out the pokédex, pointing it at the Starly, gaining the basic information. "Alright Chimchar, let's start with Leer!"

Chimchar pulled a face, causing Starly to chirp in alarm. "Now use Scratch!" Chimchar leapt into the air, slashing Starly and knocking it to the ground. "Get in there with another Scratch attack!" But Starly sped forwards in a blur, smashing into Chimchar and sending the fire type flying.

"Careful, that was Quick Attack," Lucas warned as Chimchar swayed on its feet.

"Right, Chimchar use Leer!"

"Doesn't Chimchar have any other moves yet?" He asked, bewildered.

"No, he doesn't!" Lizzie snapped as Chimchar pulled a face at Starly, causing it to flinch. "Now use Scratch!" Starly growled at Chimchar, causing him to stall long enough for Starly to use Tackle and knock Chimchar back to the ground. "Chimchar, you okay?" He staggered back up, but gave the affirmative. "Okay, then use Scratch again!" Starly dodged out of the way, but this time Chimchar opened his mouth and spits of fire flew out and blasted Starly back before it could carry out its attack. Both landed on the ground, bruised and Starly sporting a nasty burn.

"That was Ember!" Lucas cheered. "Chimchar learned how to use it!" Lizzie beamed at her partner.

"Awesome! Now Chimchar use Ember again!" The chimp spat flames at its opponent once more, sending it crashing to the ground, the burn dealing even more damage – surely it was weak enough now. Lizzie pulled out a pokeball, pressing the button on it. "Now go pokeball!" It flew through the air, smacking Starly on the head and causing it to disappear inside.

The ball wriggled back and forth a few times before there was the same _bong_ and the ball clicked shut. Starly was caught. Lizzie cheered picking up the ball and her Chimchar. "You were awesome buddy! And now we've got a Starly because of your hard work!" Chimchar chittered in pride, beaming at the praise. Lizzie then pulled out her pokédex and sure enough, the rest of Starly's information filled in:

_Starly, the Starling Pokémon. Because they are weak individually, they form groups. However, they bicker if the group grows too big._

"That was good for a first capture," Lucas said grinning. "And Chimchar's got a new move to boot. But I'd recommend heading back to the Pokémon Centre first before you keep going – they're both pretty tired out after all that." Chimchar made a noise of indignation, but the bruises from its encounter with Starly were evident and, not forgetting Starly's burn, Lizzie knew it was a good idea to take both of her pokémon back for healing. So they headed back into Sandgem town.

"I'll leave you here," Lucas said outside of the centre. "I need to head back to the lab for now. Good luck Lizzie."

"Thanks Lucas, good luck to you too. And thanks for all of your help today," she replied, bowing respectfully. Lucas just laughed and nodded, waving as he walked away. Lizzie entered the Pokémon Centre and approached Nurse Joy at the desk.

"Good afternoon, can I help you?" She asked, smiling brightly.

"Can I have my pokémon healed please?" Lizzie asked, pulling out Starly and Chimchar's pokeballs.

"Of course," the older woman replied, holding out her hands to receive the balls. Lizzie recalled Chimchar and handed them over, before Nurse Joy set them into the machine behind her. There was a noise and after a moment or two, Nurse Joy took them out and returned them to Lizzie. "There we go, all happy and healthy. We hope to see you again."

Lizzie bowed and walked away, letting both Chimchar and Starly out of their pokeballs. Starly looked around, before looking back up at its new trainer – Lizzie noticed the spot on its head was slightly smaller than the Starly belonging to the owner of the corner shop.

"I guess that means you're a girl, right?" She asked the pokémon, who chirped. Lizzie took that as a yes. "Well I'm Lizzie, this is Chimchar – are you ready to be a part of our team?" Starly chirped happily, nodding. "Brilliant. Let's get going then." Lizzie recalled Starly to her pokeball and let Chimchar back onto her shoulder. "Let's get going then – Jubilife city won't come to us after all."

Striding out of the centre with a new spring in her step from her first successful capture, Lizzie grinned at her partner. "I've got a good feeling bud and it's telling me that there's a lot more in store for us. So let's not keep it waiting!" Hitting her stride, Lizzie's walk turned into a run and she found herself dashing along Route 202.

This was only the start of a journey with many twists and turns awaiting her and even though she didn't know it, a small yet powerful form had been watching the whole time from its resting place in the lake bed of Lake Verity. She was an interesting human to the small life form and one that it would be keeping an eye on for now.

**To Be Continued...**

**Hooray chapter 2! I swear to god, the start of this chapter was ridiculous. I attempted it like three times and it affected the rest of the chapter - thankfully, this one came out best of the three. And yes, I'll be trying to give each of Lizzie's pokemon a gender and Starly should get some development in the next few chapters, as should Chimchar. **

**Reviews please :)**


	3. Second Round, Second Chance!

Lizzie lay out on her bed in the pokémon centre, flicking through her pokédex whilst Chimchar, Starly and her newly obtained Shinx played on the floor together. It had taken longer than she had thought to get to Jubilife city – it was well past seven when she arrived. Not because it had been a longer route than she had expected, but because of all the training she had been doing and the trainers she had battle along the way. What should have taken maybe an hour or two had taken the whole afternoon into the evening and somehow her pokémon were still able to get up and run around like it was no one's business. But it gave her time to come to grasps with each of their strengths and weaknesses in battle, as well as their personalities, which would be helpful in a battle when she would have to be working with them and understanding how to take advantage of their strengths.

Shinx was already shaping up as a great team member – in the course of a few hours, his Tackle attack was already stronger and he had learnt Charge too. However, his move pool was still very limited, both in his number of moves and the lack of type variety, which was something they'd need to work on before reaching Oreburgh city, where they would challenge Roark, the gym leader and Rock type expert. It was one of the things concerning Lizzie about her upcoming challenge. Her team just had no advantage against Rock types – in fact, they were at a huge disadvantage against them. Fire and Flying types were weak to Rock types, whereas Electric types had little effect on them. Not to mention the fact that part ground types only served to make matters worse, being immune to electric type attacks so even if Shinx learnt one, it wouldn't be much use. It was tempting to put off the visit to Oreburgh to look for a Grass or Water type pokémon and right now it seemed like an appropriate course of action.

There were supposed to be Budew on Route 204... A Grass type would be very helpful in the current situation, seeing as they had the upper hand over a Rock type and Budew evolved into Roselia, then Roserade. It would be a powerful comrade But then again, there were also Machop in the area around Oreburgh. Fighting types had a good advantage over Rock types too and so it would make sense. But if Lizzie could get Chimchar to evolve by then, catching a Fighting type shouldn't be such a problem – Monferno was a Fire and Fighting type, so it made up for the type match up. Lizzie sighed heavily and glanced at the clock. It was just a little past ten. Deciding to call it a day, she recalled Shinx and Starly to their pokeballs and changed into her pyjamas. Chimchar, not wanting to go to sleep, tugged on Lizzie's leg, chittering and groaning at her to beg for more play time. Lizzie frowned at Chimchar and pulled out his pokeball.

"If you're not gonna do as you're told, you'll go in the pokeball like everyone else," she scolded. Chimchar scowled and proceeded to throw a tantrum. "Fine then. Chimchar, return." The chimp disappeared into the pokeball and she tucked it away in her bag. If she was sure of one thing, she wasn't going to let her pokémon get their way like that. She climbed into bed, practically feeling Chimchar's indignation with being put into the pokeball. So long as he learnt his lesson, it didn't matter and Lizzie fell asleep, straying into dreams of her journey.

-{P}-

The following morning started bright and early – Lizzie climbed out of bed and began preparing for the day: Chimchar was sulking about having been made to stay in his pokeball over night whilst Shinx and Starly just rolled their eyes at him, knowing he was being overly dramatic. Once Lizzie and her pokémon were fed and ready, she headed for the Trainer's school to brush up on some last minute information before she left, Chimchar perched on her shoulder as per usual once the chimp had scurried back to being his cheerful little self after being threatened with the pokeball if he kept sulking.

However, the moment they left the Pokémon Centre Lizzie noticed something rather odd. A man, dressed in a trench coat with dark hair, was crouched behind a lamp post, before darting to hide behind the other one on the opposite side of the road. Lizzie and Chimchar exchanged a confused glance before approaching him, curious about what he was doing.

"Um, excuse me..." The man jumped and faced her, looking incredulous and suddenly Lizzie wondered if it had been a good idea to talk to him at all.

"What?! How on earth did you guess? How did you unmask me as a member of the International Police?" Lizzie stared in astonishment, completely taken aback by the man who had actually leapt backwards in complete shock, as though surprised someone actually had the audacity to point out his strange behaviour.

"What? No, I was just-" She began, hands raised in defence.

"Aha, you claim you were simply making conversation," he said, cutting her off, placing a hand to his chin, nodding (seemingly in admiration). "But I know better. You knew I was someone extraordinary and so you elected to speak to me – you are a trainer yes?" His eyes hovered on Chimchar for a moment. "Yes, your observational skills will serve you well." Lizzie was now under the impression that she was talking to an older Barry – this man didn't seem to slow down or wait long enough to let her finish a sentence. He was bursting with energy in fact, not unlike her friend. It left her with the same feeling of being distinctly unimpressed, tired and downright confused. "Now, I should properly introduce myself! I am a globetrotting elite of the International Police: my name is – ah! No, I shall tell you only my code name. My code name, it is Looker. That is what they call me." Lizzie cocked an eyebrow in disbelief but knew by now it was too late to just end the conversation and just walk away.

"Right... Well, I'm Lizzie. This is Chimchar." The chimp greeted the man quite happily. Looker smiled at the pokémon and nodded.

"Good good. Now Lizzie, are you familiar with the saying 'don't be a thief'?" He asked suddenly, quite out of nowhere.

"Well, yes I suppose," she replied, thrown by the sudden change in conversation. This man really was an oddball alright.

"Yes, that is correct. Taking what belongs to others is wrong," he agreed, nodding and looking pleased. Lizzie on the other hand was waiting for the first opportunity to escape the conversation altogether. But Looker always seemed to have more to say. "Unfortunately, there are apparently those who do not heed those words. In Sinnoh, in fact, there are criminals stealing the Pokémon of others. I have, therefore, been on the lookout for characters arousing my suspicion." That caught Lizzie's attention easily – normally something like that would have been news worthy, but there had not been a trace of pokémon theft on 'Sinnoh Now!' in recent years.

"Wait, someone's been stealing pokémon?" She said, frowning and crossing her arms. "I've not heard anything about it." Looker nodded, looking particularly grave and serious which was a complete change from his earlier behaviour and it threw Lizzie somewhat. Just how many times could a person completely swap up their behaviour?!

"Indeed, someone has been working hard to keep matters under wraps. Preventing people from hearing about these things. Also I have a request: should you see me again, I ask you not to speak to me for I am on duty." He looked thoughtful but then seemed to change his mind. "No... No actually, yes you may speak to me. And no, I am not lonely! Because you must inform me of bad guys! Good day." And with that he was off, departing before Lizzie could even fully take in what he had just said. He rounded the corner and all of a sudden, Lizzie stood there feeling quite stupid and weak-kneed all of a sudden. There really were some... Interesting people out there.

"Well that was weird... Anyway..." She turned back to the Trainer's School and headed inside, needing some normality to get her head back on straight after her encounter with the odd man named Looker.

-{P}-

The Trainer's School was the only one of its kind in Sinnoh. Most children learned about pokémon from parents or relatives, or it was one of the various subjects taught in school. But the Trainer's School was dedicated purely to raising the next generation of Trainers, Coordinators and Breeders and its entire curriculum was centred on pokémon. Hence, most students also attended a regular school or had private tutors for other subjects, such as English, Maths and Science.

The moment Lizzie walked in she found herself somewhere amused to see Barry at the blackboard, trying to memorise every word that was written there. Lizzie had rarely seen him so concentrated. She crept up behind him, not one to throw away such a rare opportunity, and placed a finger to the nape of his neck. His shriek of absolute horror drew every eye in the room as he leapt into the air, covering his neck. He glared at Lizzie as she laughed at him hysterically, pointing at him as she did so.

"Liz, what the hell?!" He hissed, hands still covering his neck as he pouted at her. It just reminded Lizzie of an angry Eevee. "You know I hate people touching my neck!"

Lizzie beat down her laughter, wiping a stray tear from her eye. "S-sorry, I just... Ah god, it's been a long time since I managed to get the drop on you... I couldn't resist," she breathed, regaining her composure. Barry rolled his eyes. "So, you're actually studying for once?"

He nodded, grinning. "Yeah, this stuff will help me become the greatest trainer ever! Even better than my dad," he said as he turned back to the board. "It's all on status illments!"

"Ailments," Lizzie corrected, looking at the board herself. Poison, Burn, Paralysis, Sleep, Frozen and Confusion. All of them were written here with detailed notes on each one – it was basic knowledge to anyone, but these afflictions could turn the tide of the battle in a single turn. It was worth taking note and it was the one time Lizzie had ever seen Barry be genuinely interested in something that even resembled school work. The younger students, kids who had yet to become trainers, showed curiosity towards the pair and began to bombard them with questions about pokémon, their journey and how many badges they had. Their teacher called for quiet and Lizzie decided now would be a prudent time to leave. Barry felt the same, for fear of being unmasked as mere rookies.

Once they left, they stopped by at a nearby cafe to discuss their first day of travelling. Barry stared in amazement at Lizzie's two newest team mates.

"You've already caught two more Pokémon?" He cried, looking at Shinx and Starly. "How'd you do it?"

Lizzie took a sip of her drink. "Because I spent some time on Route 202, rather than just dashing here as fast as I could. I'm surprised you're still here – I thought you'd be heading for Oreburgh," she commented, calling them both back.

"I wanted to explore the city first," he said, grinning. "I haven't been to Jubilife since dad was last home." He deflated slightly. "And that was a while ago."

Barry's father, Palmer, was a Frontier Brain of the Sinnoh Battle Frontier. Hoenn's had become so successful that the owner, Scott, began to spread out into other regions and set up Battle Facilities – Sinnoh's was one of the first and Palmer now headed the park in Scott's place, whilst serving as the Tower Tycoon. However, the Battle Frontier was on an island in the north that was only reachable by boat, being on the opposite side of the region to Twinleaf. That meant visits from Palmer were few and far between and in the past few years, as the Frontier became more popular, his trips home were even less frequent. In fact, the last time either teen had seen Palmer was back at Barry's thirteenth birthday two years ago.

Though the Tower Tycoon kept regular contact with his wife and son, it wasn't quite the same as being there and it was still a rather delicate topic for Barry that was usually best avoided. Lizzie decided to make no comment on Palmer and set her drink back onto the table.

"So Barry, what pokémon _have_ you caught since I saw you in Sandgem yesterday?" She asked, hoping to distract him. As per usual, given Barry's short attention span, it worked like a charm.

He shot to his feet. "I can show you! Let's have a battle! Route 203! Meet you there, and if you're late I'll fine you fifteen million!" He raced off down the road and Lizzie groaned, rising from her seat.

"Typical," she muttered. "And he left me to pay for it, what a jerk..."

-{P}-

At the Eastern edge of the city, the road to Oreburgh city began – Route 203. It was even wilder and more overgrown than Route 201 and the path was not clear cut. There were rough markers left by previous travellers to help newer trainers to find their way, but it certainly helped if one had a map to navigate the route. Barry was sat beneath the shade of a tree, keeping out of the heat of the sun when he spotted Lizzie and Chimchar approaching.  
"Lizzie, you're slow as ever!" He laughed, jumping to his feet. She just rolled her eyes and stood opposite him.

"You wanted to battle, so let's battle," she said, smirking, pulling out a pokeball. Barry just grinned back and took a position with a pokeball clutched in his hand. Whether or not it was Piplup's, Lizzie couldn't tell. So she went for her better option. "Starly, let's go!" The bird materialised onto the field, fluttering in mid air.

Barry tossed his ball as well. "Starly, let's show 'em what a real battle's all about!" A second Starling pokémon, this one much bigger than Lizzie's, appeared. "Ha, I bet my Starly's gonna beat yours easy!" Lizzie frowned.

"Starly, use Quick Attack!" She commanded. The smaller bird put on an impressive burst of speed and knocked Barry's out of the air as she slammed into it, full force.

Barry started as his Starly hit the ground. "Ack! Hey, no fair you can't launch an attack out of nowhere! Starly use Growl!"

"Starly, use Quick Attack!" Once again, Lizzie's Starly outpaced Barry's easily and sent it flying into a tree. It seemed her smaller, lighter build was giving her a much bigger advantage.

"Starly pull yourself together!" Barry cried. "Use your Quick Attack!" Lizzie flinched as this time it was her Starly biting the dust – Barry's Flying type was far faster than it looked. "Now use Growl!"

"Use Wing Attack!" Lizzie's Starly smacked Barry's repeatedly with her wings, slapping it harshly before swooping into the air out of reach. "Finish this with Quick Attack!"

"Not so fast!" Barry cried. "Starly, use Double Team!" Suddenly, there were Starly everywhere and Lizzie quickly found herself unable to tell which one was real. All but one of them were just a projection of the real thing, but each of them looked real enough. She had seen trainers use this technique before on TV; distract their opponent with the copies and then strike hard and fast whilst they're unable to pick out the real one. That was obviously Barry's objective right now.

"Starly, watch out! Only one is real!" Lizzie warned her Starling, who nodded in return. Barry grinned.

"Yeah, one is. But which one? Starly use Quick Attack!" All the Starly bombarded Lizzie's, most simply phasing through her before the real one collided, sending it crashing to the ground. Lizzie's Starly wasn't moving – it was unable to battle. "OH YEAH! Score one to us!" Barry cheered, hugging his own Starly. "I told you, my Starly would beat yours easy!"

Lizzie didn't reply as she recalled her Starly. "You tried your best," she said softly, before tucking the ball into her bag. "Okay Barry, let's see what you make of this! Chimchar, you're up!" The chimp cheered with enthusiasm, leaping forwards and glowering at Starly. If anything, Lizzie was hoping Chimchar's speed and Ember would give them an upper hand, not to mention Barry's overblown confidence over a single victory. Hopefully that would be his undoing.

"Right, Starly use Quick Attack!" Barry commanded.

"Brace yourself!" Lizzie called – Starly was too fast to dodge, so minimising the damage was the way to go. Starly put on an incredible burst of speed as Chimchar braced himself for the attack as it struck head on. He was driven backwards, kicking up dirt but he managed to remain on his feet and shrugged off most of the damage. "Now use Ember!" Chimchar spat flames at Starly which hit the mark dead on, blasting the starling back to the ground. There was no burn, but a red welt swelled up on its wing accompanied by the stink of singed feathers. Barry squawked in indecency at this turn around.  
"Starly use Wing Attack!"

"Chimchar use Leer!" Just as Starly moved in for the offensive, Chimchar pulled a face and caused Starly to flinch momentarily. "Now use Ember, close range!" Starly was too close to dodge, its attack paused a moment too long. Starly was blasted back across the ground, unmoving. "And that's victory for us! Good job Chimchar!" The chimp chattered in joy, doing a little dance for all of his excitement from winning.

Barry frowned as he recalled Starly, but softened slightly. "You took out her first pokémon and put up a good fight. We'll take it from here." He tucked it away and pulled out his second pokeball. "Don't think you'll beat us this time – go Piplup!" The blue penguin burst onto the field, locking eyes with Chimchar. Both pokémon frowned, knowing exactly what was coming next. Lizzie knew she was at a serious disadvantage – Piplup had the type advantage and Chimchar was a little worn out from keeping up with Starly. Piplup meanwhile, was having no trouble at all. But there was still Shinx if this round went sour. "Piplup, use Bubble!"

Lizzie grinned – that was the most obvious move Barry could have pulled. "Chimchar block it with Ember!" The flames and bubbles collided mid air, creating a small blast, but both were relatively unharmed. "Now use Scratch!"

"Piplup, Bubble!" Barry called. Chimchar had the sense to duck and his attack connected with Piplup who had not been expecting a counter strike. But the Penguin was stronger since his last battle with Chimchar and he endured the attack easily.

"Chimchar, Ember use close!" Lizzie commanded, hoping to get an attack in before Piplup and end this battle quickly.

But Barry always had a very fast reaction time. "Piplup, use Bubble, don't give it any time!" Piplup's bubbles struck Chimchar before the fire could fly and sent the Fire type flying backwards. It had been a good hit and a strong one at that. Chimchar struggled back to his feet and this time Piplup was going to make sure he didn't get back up again. Lizzie reacted before Barry or Piplup could.

"Chimchar return!" She called, holding out his pokeball and withdrawing him from the field. Barry smirked with satisfaction – Lizzie had acknowledged Piplup would have probably won that bout. His Piplup had overtaken her Chimchar already. But Lizzie was going to wipe that grin off of his face right now. "Shinx, it's up to you!" The lion cub materialised in the white light and his eyes immediately latched onto Piplup. Barry grimaced – Shinx was an Electric type. It had a good advantage. But it was still a new capture and therefore, wouldn't be as tough as Chimchar. This was in the bag, he was sure of it.

"Alright, Piplup use Pound," Barry ordered, his smirk reappearing on his face. Piplup launched forwards, fin drawn back, ready to strike Shinx as hard as he could.

"Shinx, dodge and use Charge!" Shinx darted to the right and tensed itself, gathering its electrical power. Barry yelped – Charge increased Shinx's attack power, especially Electric attacks!

"Piplup, use Bubble!"

It was Lizzie's turn to smirk as she gave her command: "Shinx use Tackle!" Still sparkling with electrical energy, Shinx charged forwards and slammed into Piplup. The penguin reeled backwards – the lingering electrical energy from Charge had done some damage too and it had weakened Piplup significantly. "Use Tackle again!"

"Piplup use Growl!" Piplup responded quickly and Shinx flinched and though his attack still connected, it wasn't as strong as the first. "Now Bubble!" The blue spheres flew at Shinx and burst powerfully on contact with the feline. He fell to the ground, badly weakened by the direct attack and struggled back onto his paws before falling to the ground again. Barry's Piplup outstripped Shinx by far. Barry's smirk had returned and Lizzie felt her gut knot. "Piplup, let's finish this already! Use Bubble!"

"Shinx, dodge it!" Lizzie cried. Shinx, in a stroke of pure genius, rolled out of the way rather than trying to jump. The bubbles burst on the ground where Shinx had been only a moment ago. "Good, now Charge!"

Lizzie was aware that charge only heightened Shinx's attack power, but hopefully that congregation of electricity in Shinx's muscles would give him the strength to stand. If not, Shinx was out of the game. Without one ranged attack, Shinx could only fight up close and if he couldn't stand, he couldn't fight. Especially if Barry decided to play at range.

"This is going on way too long," Barry groaned. "Piplup, finish this with Pound." He had gone in close! Lizzie felt her heart leap, knowing this was her chance.

"Shinx, use Tackle!" The feline managed to propel himself forwards, hitting Piplup square in the chest and the pair landed in a heap. But Shinx took advantage of Piplup's shock and, using its sharp fangs, bit hard into Piplup's fin, causing the penguin to cry in pain and flail as Shinx used his weight to pin Piplup to the ground.

"Hey no fair!" Barry cried, stomping hard on the ground. "Piplup use Bubble!"

"Don't let it!" Lizzie cried. Shinx dug his teeth in deeper, spots of blood appearing as Piplup's cries of pain worsened. "Now back off and use Tackle, one more time!" Shinx released its fangs, but it was sluggish with exhaustion and couldn't back off quickly enough: that was all the opening Piplup needed to carry out its attack. Shinx was blasted back through the air and landed roughly on the ground, unable to battle. "Shinx!"

"Haha! We win!" Barry cried victoriously. Lizzie recalled Shinx, knowing it was all or nothing now.

"Don't be so sure – I've still got one Pokémon left and you know it," she growled, pulling out Chimchar's pokeball.

Barry seemed undeterred by the reminder. "Chimchar's pretty worn out from his battle with Piplup already, there's no way he can win," he teased, smirking. Lizzie knew that was true – the likelihood of victory was very slim by this point, but she had to keep pushing.

"Chimchar, you're up!"

If Piplup looked worn out, Chimchar was exhausted. The battles with Starly and Piplup had taken their toll. Lizzie had hoped that the rest between his recall and Shinx's defeat would allow it to recuperate some strength – apparently that wasn't the case. But there was determination in those coal grey eyes and Chimchar wasn't going down without a fight. That much was clear. So Lizzie tensed herself, waiting to see who would call the first move.  
It was Barry. "Use Bubble and finish this," he ordered casually.

"Chimchar, dodge it!" Chimchar rolled out of the way of the bubbles that were fired his way rather than his usual leap. The next few moves would be crucial in which way this battle went. "Now use Leer!" Piplup flinched at the face Chimchar pulled. "Now get in close and use Ember!" Chimchar shot forwards with surprising speed, a final spurt of energy to close the gap, before opening his mouth and firing flames right into Piplup's face. The Penguin screeched in pain, the burns being painful and raw. That side effect couldn't have come at a better time. "One more time, use Ember and grab Piplup's fins!" Chimchar seized the stubby blue limbs, Piplup struggling to pull away.  
"Piplup, don't take that from them! Use Bubble!" But the order came too late – the flames hit hard and coupled with the burn, it was too much. Piplup sagged to the ground, unable to battle. Chimchar stood tall for a moment longer before collapsing as well.

"Piplup!" "Chimchar!" The cries of both trainers were intermingled as they gathered up the two wounded and ran back towards the Jubilife Pokémon Centre.

-{P}-

Lizzie and Barry sat together outside on a bench, waiting to hear from Nurse Joy. The two pokémon had gone to their absolute limits and were in need of intensive care, though the kindly Nurse said it was a common occurrence in pokémon battles it did nothing to ease their guilt. Had they pushed too hard, asked for too much? They just sat side by side, before Barry finally spoke.  
"I really thought I had that in the bag back there," he admitted. "I really thought I had you."

"I thought so too," Lizzie replied quietly. "I wasn't sure if Chimchar would be fast enough, as worn out as he was. I was surprised to see he had so much fight left." Barry nodded.

"Hey but you only won because you had three pokémon. I would've won if you only had two," he smirked, prodding her in the arm. Lizzie rolled her eyes but didn't reply. She knew that was true. She wasn't necessarily more skilled than Barry, she just had the advantage of numbers. Probably the reason why her victory seemed to mean so little, even when Nurse Joy poked her head out the door and said that their pokémon were ready for collection. The two trainers followed her inside where they were greeted by their teams, looking as though the battle had never happened at all.

"Hey guys, how you feeling?" Lizzie asked as Chimchar leapt onto her shoulder and Shinx and Starly cuddled up to her legs. "You were amazing, all three of you. You did excellently against Barry's team."

"Same for you guys," Barry praised, rubbing Piplup and Starly's heads. "You gave it your all and we were so close. We'll get 'em next time." After a few minutes of praising, both Lizzie and Barry recalled their teams (Chimchar forever being the exception) before turning to face each other. "So Liz, you're headed for Oreburgh right?"

Lizzie nodded. "Yep, that's where the first gym is. You headed the same way?"

Barry nodded. "If I'm gonna beat my dad, I need to beat all of the gym leaders in Sinnoh first and challenge the Elite Four!" He hyped. "And someday I'll be the best trainer in Sinnoh, you can count on it!" Lizzie just laughed and nodded her head.

"Not if I get there first. Well Barry, I'll make sure to meet you there. Promise?" She offered a hand to him.

"Promise," he confirmed, shaking it firmly with a grin plastered on his face. "And work hard – I don't wanna hear you've been slacking or I'll fine you $100 million!" Lizzie shook her head, laughing as he ran out of the building and up the road. Nurse Joy gave a bemused smile, shook her head and returned to work.

"Well, we'd best get moving if we're going to meet him at the top of that mountain," she noted, more to herself than to Chimchar, though the chimp responded with a cheer anyway. So Lizzie began to walk, not sure what was awaiting her down the road, but positive that she would rise to meet the challenge.

**To Be Continued...**

**Woo, chapter 3 :D After how much inactivity and procrastination, it's done! Meh, battles are still such an issue with me, but I like to think I'm improving. And I hope they improve as the team gains new moves and a more defined battle style (if I can define one that is). And yes, she has a Shinx now, no questions.**


End file.
